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The Evidence Base: Predictors of School Readiness

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Access to high-quality childcare betters outcomes in the following domains: neuro-typical brain development;1 reading and associated competencies (vocabulary, language performance, and emergent literacy);2 and social-emotional development (emotional understanding, social problem solving, and learning engagement).3,4 It yields the highest short and long-term benefits for low-income children relative to their higher-income peers.5,6,7

Multiple studies found association between parental warmth, acceptance, and responsiveness and child language performance as well as later academic and social performance.8,9

A child’s home learning environment (HLE) is critical to their development. HLE, which has been linked to improved outcomes in literacy and kindergarten reading success, includes active (shared readings) and passive (seeing parent read the newspaper) activities;10 consistent bedtimes and books in the home;11 and amount of time and type of TV programming watched by young children.12,13 Further, shared reading or reading to children itself has been linked to higher literacy and language competencies.14,15,16,17

Multiple measures of health,18 including current health status and low birth weight, have been found to be strong predictors of school readiness.19 Infants born premature (association stronger in boys) are more likely to display lower school readiness, and low birth weight is associated with an increased risk for learning disabilities.20,21 A lack of access to prenatal care for pregnant women is associated with low birth weight and premature birth.22,23 These pre-existing factors are often amplified by a lack of subsequent access to primary care to identify, treat, and prevent issues that may negatively impact a child’s healthy development.24,25

Poor nutrition has been linked to a child’s ability to learn effectively, concentrate, and perform academically in school.26,27 In addition, poor nutrition is associated with a suite of social and emotional challenges in school, including: behavioral, emotional, and academic problems; increased displays of aggressive and anxious behaviors; and as teens, more disciplinary conflicts and increased difficulty getting along with peers.28 Finally, poor nutrition is also a risk factor for health issues, including increased susceptibility to illness and obesity, which can affect a child’s school readiness and academic performance.29

For CFRP's work on early childhood, go to Publications > Early Childcare and Education.

  • Citations
    1 Palkovitz, R., Fagan, J., & Hull, J. (2013). Coparenting and children’s well-being. In N. J. Cabrera & C. S. Tamis-LeMonda (Eds.), Handbook of father involvement (2nd ed., pp. 202–219). New York: Routledge.

	2 Hohmann-Marriott, B. (2011). Coparenting and father involvement in married and unmarried coresident couples. Journal of Marriage and Family, 73(1), 296–309. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2010.00805.x

	3 Doherty, W. J., Kouneski, E. F., & Erickson, M. F. (1998). Responsible fathering: An overview and conceptual framework. Journal of Marriage and Family, 60(2), 277. https://doi.org/10.2307/353848

	4 Waller, M. R. (2012). Cooperation, conflict, or disengagement? Coparenting styles and father involvement in fragile families. Family Process, 51(3), 325–342. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1545-5300.2012.01403.x

	5 Carlson, M. J., McLanahan, S. S., & Brooks-Gunn, J. (2008). Coparenting and nonresident fathers’ involvement with young children after a nonmarital birth. Demography, 45(2), 461–488. https://doi.org/10.1353/dem.0.0007

	6 Varga, C. M., Gee, C. B., Rivera, L., & Reyes, C. X. (2017). Coparenting mediates the association between relationship quality and father involvement. Youth & Society, 49(5), 588–609. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X14548529

	7 Gee, C. B., McNerney, C. M., Reither, M. J., & Leaman, S. C. (2007). Adolescent and young adult mothers' relationship quality during the transition to parenthood: Associations with father involvement in fragile families. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36(2), 213-224. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-006-9130-x

	8 Ryan, R. M., Kalil, A., & Ziol-Guest, K. M. (2008). Longitudinal patterns of non-residential fathers' involvement: The role of resources and relations. Journal of Marriage and Family, 70(4), 962-977. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2008.00539.x

	9 Marsiglio, W., Amato, P., Day, R. D., & Lamb, M. E. (2000). Scholarship on fatherhood in the 1990s and beyond. Journal of Marriage and Family, 62(4), 1173–1191. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2000.01173.x

	10 McLanahan, S. S., & Beck, A. N. (2010). Parental relationships in fragile families. Future of Children, 20(2), 17–37. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/20773693

	11 Coley, R. L., & Hernandez, D. C. (2006). Predictors of paternal involvement for resident and nonresident low-income fathers. Developmental Psychology, 42(6), 1041–1056. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.42.6.1041

	12 Coleman, P. K., & Karraker, K. H. (1998). Self-efficacy and parenting quality: Findings and future applications. Developmental Review, 18(1), 47–85. https://doi.org/10.1006/drev.1997.0448

	13 Jones, T. L., & Prinz, R. J. (2005). Potential roles of parental self-efficacy in parent and child adjustment: A review. Clinical Psychology Review, 25(3), 341–363. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2004.12.004

	14 Shumow, L., & Lomax, R. (2002). Parental efficacy: Predictor of parenting behavior and adolescent outcomes. Parenting, 2(2), 127–150. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327922PAR0202_03

	15 Leerkes, E. M., & Burney, R. V. (2007). The development of parenting efficacy among new mothers and fathers. Infancy, 12(1), 45–67. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-7078.2007.tb00233.x

	16 Coley, R. L., & Hernandez, D. C. (2006). Predictors of paternal involvement for resident and nonresident low-income fathers. Developmental Psychology, 42(6), 1041–1056. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.42.6.1041

	17 Trahan, M. H. (2017). Paternal self-efficacy and father involvement: A bi-directional relationship. Psychology of Men & Masculinity. https://doi.org/10.1037/men0000130

	18 Favez, N., Tissot, H., Frascarolo, F., Stiefel, F., & Despland, J. N. (2016). Sense of competence and beliefs about parental roles in mothers and fathers as predictors of coparenting and child engagement in mother-father-infant triadic interactions: Parental sense of competence, beliefs, and coparenting. Infant and Child Development, 25(4), 283–301. https://doi.org/10.1002/icd.1934

	19 Goldberg, J. S. (2015). Identity and involvement among resident and nonresident fathers. Journal of Family Issues, 36(7), 852–879. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X13500963

	20 Henley, K., & Pasley, K. (2005). Conditions affecting the association between father identity and father involvement. Fathering, 3(1), 59–80. Retrieved from http://www.mensstudies.info/OJS/index.php/FATHERING/article/view/224

	21 Tamis-LeMonda, C., & Cabrera, N. (1999). Perspectives on father involvement: Research and social policy. Social Policy Report: Society for Research in Child Development, 13(2), 1–32. 

	22 Doherty, W. J., Kouneski, E. F., & Erickson, M. F. (1998). Responsible fathering: An overview and conceptual framework. Journal of Marriage and Family, 60(2), 277. https://doi.org/10.2307/353848

	23 Högnäs, R. S., & Williams, H. (2017). Maternal kinship involvement and father identity in fragile families. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 38(2), 249–262. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-016-9487-2

	24 Ryan, R. M., Kalil, A., & Ziol-Guest, K. M. (2008). Longitudinal patterns of non-residential fathers' involvement: The role of resources and relations. Journal of Marriage and Family, 70(4), 962-977. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2008.00539.x

	25 Doherty, W. J., Kouneski, E. F., & Erickson, M. F. (1998). Responsible fathering: An overview and conceptual framework. Journal of Marriage and Family, 60(2), 277. https://doi.org/10.2307/353848 

	26 Nepomnyaschy, L. (2007). Child support and father-child contact: Testing reciprocal pathways. Demography, 44(1), 93–112. https://doi.org/10.1353/dem.2007.0008

	27 Turner, K. J., & Waller, M. R. (2017). Indebted relationships: child support arrears and nonresident fathers’ involvement with children: Child support arrears and father involvement. Journal of Marriage and Family, 79(1), 24–43. https://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12361.

	28 Waller, M. R., & Swisher, R. (2006). Fathers’ risk factors in fragile families: Implications for “healthy” relationships and father involvement. Social Problems, 53(3), 392–420. https://doi.org/10.1525/sp.2006.53.3.392.

	29 Berger, L. M., & Langton, C. E. (2011). Young disadvantaged men as fathers. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 635, 56–75. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002716210393648

	30 Woldoff, R. A., & Washington, H. M. (2008). Arrested contact: The criminal justice system, race, and father engagement. The Prison Journal, 88(2), 179–206. https://doi.org/10.1177/0032885508319154.

	31 Osborne, C., et al. (2013). A portrait of father involvement and support in the first three years after a nonmarital birth. Austin, TX: University of Texas at Austin, LBJ School of Public Affairs, Child & Family Research Partnership. Retrieved from https://childandfamilyresearch.utexas.edu/portrait-father-involvement-and-support-first-three-years-after-nonmarital-birth

	32 Fagan, J., & Lee, Y. (2012). Effects of fathers’ early risk and resilience on paternal engagement with 5-year-olds. Family Relations, 61(5), 878–892. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3729.2012.00741.x.

	33 Harknett, K., & Knab, J. (2007). More kin, less support: Multipartnered fertility and perceived support among mothers. Journal of Marriage and Family, 69, 237–253. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2006.00356.x

	34 Baker, C. E. (2014). African American fathers’ depression and stress as predictors of father involvement during early childhood. Journal of Black Psychology, 40(4), 311–333. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095798413486480.

	35 Fagan, J., Bernd, E., & Whiteman, V. (2007). Adolescent fathers’ parenting stress, social support, and involvement with infants. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 17(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-7795.2007.00510.x.

	36 Bronte-Tinkew, J., Ryan, S., Carrano, J., & Moore, K. A. (2007). Resident fathers’ pregnancy intentions, prenatal behaviors, and links to involvement with infants. Journal of Marriage and Family, 69(4), 977–999. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2007.00425.x

	37 Coley, R. L., & Chase-Lansdale, P. L. (1998). Adolescent pregnancy and parenthood: Recent evidence and future directions. American Psychologist, 53(2), 152–166. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.53.2.152.

	38 Fagan, J., Palkovitz, R., Roy, K., & Farrie, D. (2009). Pathways to paternal engagement: Longitudinal effects of risk and resilience on nonresident fathers. Developmental Psychology, 45(5), 1389–1405. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0015210
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